From DE 196 11 074 A1, a so-called out-side-lying double-strand Bowden cable window lifter is known, whose mechanical displacement system is disposed between the outside door panel and the window pane. The attachment of the guide rails is effected by screw connections to the inside door panel, which is flanged by the outside door panel. Outside-lying window lifters have the advantage that they are very space-efficient and do not reduce the space between the window pane and the inside door trim panel, yielding greater design flexibility for the inside door trim panel. However, it is disadvantageous that the union of the design principle of an outside-lying window lifter with the advantages of a door module consisting of a large number of preassembled and preinspectable functional units on a supporting plate does not seem readily possible.
Some door modules are described in DE 195 09 282 A1 and DE 195 11 105 C1. According to these references, the guide rails of the cable window lifter are connected by suitable attachment points to the supporting plate, which obviously only permits attachment of the window pane in the manner of a so-called inside-lying window lifter, in which the window pane is disposed between the outside door panel and the window lifter. Inevitably the design of the supporting plate cannot be effected without consideration of the requirements of the window pane guidance and, consequently, of the window lifter. The large cutouts provided in the inside door panel are completely covered by the respective supporting plates. In order to attach the window pane to the window lifter after completion of the assembly of the supporting plate, special mounting openings are available in the supporting plate, which may be re-sealed after completion of assembly, for example, by rubber covers.
EP 0 420 617 B1 describes a door window cassette consisting substantially of a window frame and guide channels for the window pane attached to the sides thereof as well as a mounting plate lying between them. Four individual cable guide rollers and a drive unit are mounted directly on the mounting plate. A horizontally running rod is attached by its ends to the vertically running sections of the cable sling guided around the guide rollers. The window pane is connected too the window lifter by means of connection bolts of the rod. Thus, the supporting plate represents an integral component of the window lifter and must, consequently, be precisely adapted to the guidance requirements of the window pane.